1993 Redbook America's 177 Best Schools

N
A APRIL L993. $1.95

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Ele

Tf you want your child

to have a love of learning

erica’s

Best

mentary

School

that lasts a lifetime, there’s no substitute for the right start. Here,

education experts rate the 177 top schools and share the secrets

of their success. BY MICHAEL J. WEISS

hree years ago, Craycroft Ele-

mentary School in Tucson, Ari-

zona, was an example of every-

thing wrong with public schools.

Each day, nearly 15 percent of

its 350 students missed class. Home-

work was ignored and standardized test
scores were among the area’s worst.

Then Craycroft, whose student pop-

ulation is about half white and half

Hispanic, urged parents to get more

involved. The results: Classroom vol-

unteers jumped from 7 to 150. PTO

- members made house calls to other par-

ents to help tutor their children. With
equipment contributed by local busi-
nesses, parents helped set up a comput-
er lab and science center.

Today Craycroft is an educational
showcase. Some 60 percent of its gradu-
ating fifth graders score higher than the
national norm on standardized tests. At-
tendance is 97 percent. Principal Franklin
Narducci credits the fact that children
learn best when adults show they care
about school for the dramatic turnaround.

Success stories like Craycroft’s may
seem like the exception rather than the
rule. But the untold story of American
education is that many of the nation’s
59,015 elementaries are succeeding.

Indeed, in our annual America’s Best
Schools project, we found 177 public
elementaries worthy of honor, includ-

Making a
splash in
ecology, fifth
graders at
School No. 29
- in Yonkers,
New York,
get hands-on Be
lessons in
sea life.

ing rich and poor schools, inner city
and suburban schools; schools with 200
students and those with more than
1,300. What the winners all have in
common is a commitment to finding
the best ways to meet the needs of
today’s young students. They know that
a child’s first school experiences set the
stage for lifelong learning.

But because there’s no agreement on
how to create the perfect school, the
best ones devote an impressive amount
of time to experimenting with an array
of programs to enhance learning. Such
grass roots reforms are steadily chang-
ing the way we educate our children:
¢No more rote learning. Gone is the
back-to-basics revival of the eighties

with its emphasis on memorization. ‘

Educators no longer think kids’ heads

should just be stuffed full of facts.
Instead, the goal is to make pupils inde-
pendent thinkers. “Kids don’t learn
much when they’re faced with passive
activities,” says Henry Levin, Ph.D., a
Stanford University professor whose
Accelerated Schools Project has been
adopted by more than 325 schools.
Rather than assign fill-in-the-blank
work sheets, for instance, teachers at
Daniel Webster Accelerated School in
San Francisco may ask third-grade stu-
dents to critique Charlotte’s Web or
fourth graders to analyze The Cosby Show.
*Derailing “tracking.” Although
tracking—the practice of grouping chil-
dren by ability—is still used in about
60 percent of U.S. elementary schools,
it’s losing favor. Although it may be
efficient to move (continued on page 54)

REDBOOK APRIL 1993 53

(continued from page 53)
like-minded pupils along in - :

unison, often only the smart-
est students—who get all the

educational goodies—profit.

At the low end, classes look”
more like the Sweathogs from the’
old sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter. And
a growing number of researchers say
that tracking is self-fulfilling: As dis-
advantaged kids fall years behind
their grade levels, they grow to dislike
school. Better, they say, to mix chil-
dren at different levels in the same
classroom. They cite studies showing
that such classes increase everyone’s
achievement, including gifted students
who help tutor their classmates.
*Growing the school year. At 178

er Car >

days, American kids have one
of the shortest school years
among industrialized nations.
Japanese youngsters, by con-
trast, go to school for 210 days

“The number of year- four

co
Seygov schools is rising, albeit slowly:

2,017 public schools have now abol-
ished long summer vacations, substitut-
ing shorter breaks throughout the year.
(Though many educators know year-
round schools could close the perfor-
mance gap, cost is the major obstacle. An
estimated $1 billion is needed for every
extra day spent teaching the nation’s
42.25 million public-school children.)
*Helping the urban poor. A growing
number of schools are making an ef-
fort to reach disadvantaged students.

Does your school make

eview the following qualities

shared by our winners to see

if your school measures up.
INVOLVED PARENTS Winning schools
find creative ways to include busy
parents in their children’s education.
At Boston’s Mather Elementary,
principal M. Kim Marshall sends par-
ents a weekly one-page guide about
their kids’ schoolwork. At George
Washington Carver Elementary
Schogl in San Francisco, parents can
drop by at their convenience, and
take math and reading workshops
so they can better tutor their kids.
In many top schools, 90 percent of
the parents volunteer their time.
A COMMITTED PRINCIPAL Principals
of the best schools are determined
and caring, and dedicated to children
above and beyond the call. At
Baltimore's Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
Elementary School, principal Deborah
Wortham goes door-to-door to
introduce herself to parents. R.
Karen Craig, the principal at Naches
Valley Primary in Yakima, Wash-
ington, shares a cafeteria lunch with
a different child each day until, by
year’s end, she’s met every pupil.
NURTURING TEACHERS Outstanding
teachers are not only qualified in
their craft, they also respect the
different ways kids learn, and are
dedicated to having all students
do their best. At Union Elementary
School in Montpelier, Vermont,
students who need extra nurturing
are often taught by the same teacher
for two or three years. At Westridge

s4 REDBOOK APRIL 1993

Elementary in Raytown, Missouri,
teams of teachers identify students
with academic or emotional problems
and then assign a “care teacher” to
provide daily encouragement.

AN EMPHASIS ON THE WRITTEN WORD
Instead of work sheets and Dick
and Jane readers, these schools
offer a “whole language” approach,
meaning kids write at every

. Opportunity and work at developing

speaking skills. At Dutch Fork
Elementary in Irmo, South Carolina,
an in-school mail system encourages
younger students to write to their
teachers and each other. At the
best schools, keeping a journal is as
common as carrying a lunchbox.
HANDS-ON LEARNING Experts esti-
mate that 75 percent of all children
learn faster and retain more
through real-world experiences.

Top elementaries feature nature
trails, environmental labs, and
simulated communities. At E. F.
Swinney Applied Learning Magnet
in Kansas City, Missouri, students
plant gardens and publish their

own newspapers. Sixth graders at
Mountain Brook Elementary School
in Birmingham, Alabama, observe

a trial at a county courthouse and
then invite a local judge to preside
over a mock student trial.
INNOVATIVE USE OF TECHNOLOGY
Until recently, high technology at
most elementary schools meant an
overhead projector and some shared
VCRs. But at leading schools such
as Floranada Elementary School in

“Many kids under economic and social
stress need special services,” says James
Comer, M.D., a psychiatrist and direc-
tor of the Yale University Child Study
Center School Development Program.
“But most of all, they need an attitude
that says, You can succeed.” A Dr.
Comer-designed program that strives
to build an active partnership between
parents, teachers, and social workers has
been adopted at some 250 schools.

If one lesson is clear, it’s that schools
must change as our society does. By
constantly revitalizing themselves, our
177 winners are leading the way to
sparking excellence in ai/ schools. Oj

. Michael F. Weiss is Redbook’s America’s

Best Schools project director.

the grade?

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, pupils pro-
duce a closed-circuit television pro-
gram every morning. Many of the
nation’s best schools fully integrate
computers into daily learning by first
grade; some even allow students to
borrow computers like library books.
ALTERNATIVE ASSESSMENTS
Progressive elementary schools know
that success can’t be measured by
standardized multiple-choice tests
alone. At New Suncook School in
Lovell, Maine, teachers evaluate their
students through written reports,
oral presentations, and group
projects. And students contribute a
journal entry and a written self-
portrait as part of their assessments.
SUPPORTIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The finest elementaries thrive
because they create a climate of high
expectations. Dr. Lawrence A. Nixon
Elementary in EI Paso, Texas, treats
all of its 425 students as gifted,
providing them with an accelerated
curriculum that features laser-disc
science equipment. Exemplary
schools reward student success—no
matter the arena—with bulletin

board displays, awards assemblies,
and positive letters home.
COMMUNITY ALLIANCES Besides

the usual visits by local police and
fire chiefs, top schools enjoy
presentations by business leaders,
writers, college professors, and
artists. They take students on field
trips to see how offices and factories
work as well as attend concerts and
other cultural events. —M.J.W.

(continued on page 56)

Tey wt oe ed BOX

: - ey Os
; Our blue-ribbon panel of education experts
Best of the States savrvazer” BEST

The secret to their success? They combine innovative curricula, compassionate
teachers, impressive test scores, and an uncompromising commitment to excellence.

~

STATE SCHOOL CITY
AL! Cahaba Heights 1 Birmingham 1 This suburban school for 850 prides itself on involved parents (1,520 belong to
Community School | i the PTO) and an innovative curriculum: Students keep journals, correspond with
!

j foreign pen pals, and publish a school newspaper.

Tucson j This ance noublel school hs basinal a source of state sips by croviding’ its 365 |
students with unusual learning settings, including a biosphere, desert trail,
First Interstate Banking/Math Lab, and Kids’ Kitchen; parents can take classes in

i math, science, computers, and parenting skills.

‘

ad is

CA i} Rookop ; 1 San Francisco l Rooftop’ 's 339 students achieve impressive aPENS eee to award-winning teachers:

i Alternative School | i and community consultants who areal in art, architecture, and science.

! This exemplary inner-city magnet has overcome numerous urban ills by offering i its
j 328 students high-quality programs in writing and art-appreciation as well as in
; space exploration and rea sexual-abuse awareness.

j Anovel parent group organizes ‘fter-chool tutors, funds engaging math courses,
. ane awards sesh grants for epecral Perea

I. N. Ragsdale Asante | 4 model urban school, Ragsdale offers its 351 students an impressive array of

! extracurricular activities, such as a mentoring program for at-risk pupils, tutoring
l I i for classroom enrichment, rap sessions for girls, and an Honor Court to recognize
I I i achievements ‘by all.

Siok ies

i Cass d'Alene i Sorensen’s 332 coments not rou help manage the school as peer mediators and
i + student-council representatives, they also organize clubs—in art, drama, and chess—
i

j : and recruit teachers and parents to act as advisers.

Indianapolis ; Described as a cross between a children’s museum and a school, Key develops

! its 179 students’ varied abilities through multiage classes; elective courses; daily
instruction in music, art, and computers; and nontraditional grading by video
| presentations and art and writing portfolios. (continued on page 58)

MONEY ISN’T EVERYTHING
Average 1991 annual expenditure per public school pupil: $5, 470.

Average spent by our Best Schools winners: $4,282.

| Ips Key School, #97

36 REDBOOK APRIL 1993

: onlay : | ,
BEST Category Winners

Our judging panel selected the following 126 schools as the best in their respective categories.
og Ss. ae ee The honored schools are listed alphabetically by state within each category; one school
ana CHooY ' from each category is highlighted to provide a more detailed portrait of its successful formula.

OVERALL EXCELLENCE thrive because our parents and teachers want to be the best,”
These 72 well-rounded schools excel in many ways. They says principal Karen Gould, Ed.D.

offer students a success-oriented mix of a creative curriculum
and varied extracurricular activities, nurturing teachers, and
supportive parent and community members.

Indian Creek Elementary, Indianapolis, Indiana

Despite only modest financial support from a socio-
economically diverse community, Indian Creek Elementary
still manages to excel thanks to grants, fund-raisers, and a
committed faculty. The school offers its 533 students the
latest learning tools—including one computer for every
two students. But it’s not the high-tech wizardry alone that
makes this school exceptional. A six-acre outdoor nature
center is a living lesson in botany. A nationally recognized
artists-in-residence program teaches weaving, mime, .
and storytelling. And fourth- and fifth-grade students in es

the French Back-to-Back program take a three-week if f

trip to France while stateside classmates interact with French BBE a

exchange students. Indian Creek boasts a 98 percent Youngsters at Indian Creek Elementary profit from

attendance rate and higher than average test scores. “We special computer-learning labs.
Elementary School ! City/State Elementary School | City/State
Jim Pearson ! Alexander City, Alabama Midway Heights ! Columbia, Missouri
Mountain Brook ! Birmingham, Alabama E. F. Swinney Applied Learning Magnet ! Kansas City, Missouri
_ Westwood | Springdale, Arkansas Cambridge School ! Kendall Park, New Jersey
Ezequiel A. Balderas | Fresno, California Sandyston-Walpack School | Layton, New Jersey
Glenn E. Murdock {| La Mesa, California Littleton | Morris Plains, New Jersey
Union House i Sacramento, California Dutch Neck School 1 Princeton Junction, New Jersey
« Daniel Webster Accelerated School i San Francisco, California Hillrise i Las Cruces, New Mexico
Dr. George Washington Carver i San Francisco, California Benjamin Franklin i Binghamton, New York
Killingly Central School i Dayville, Connecticut West Frankfort i Frankfort, New York
Stratfield School - Fairfield, Connecticut Tangier Smith - Mastic Beach, New York
Union School ! Unionville, Connecticut P.S. 75, I
Tilford W. Miller School ! Wilton, Connecticut The Emily Dickinson School ! New York, New York
Clover Street School | Windsor, Connecticut P.S. 124, |
Floranada ! Fort Lauderdale, Florida The Yung Wing Elementary School | New York, New York
Oak Hill { Jacksonville, Florida Fox Meadow | Scarsdalc, New York
Southwest | Lakeland, Florida Wantagh | Wantagh, New York
Aikahi , Kailua, Hawaii Barrington Road { Upper Arlington, Ohio
Grove Avenue School | Barrington, Illinois Caledonia School j East Cleveland, Ohio
Daniel Webster School #46 j Indianapolis, Indiana Morgan j Hamilton, Ohio
Indian Creek i Indianapolis, Indiana Alameda i Portland, Oregon
East + Pendleton, Indiana Bradford School - Bradford, Rhode Island
Tecumseh-Harrison ! Vincennes, Indiana Buist Academy Charleston, South Carolina
Valley Park ' Overland Park, Kansas Satchel Ford ! Columbia, South Carolina
Arlington | Lexington, Kentucky Dutch Fork ! Irmo, South Carolina
Mary G. Hogsett | Danville, Kentucky Vermillion | Vermillion, South Dakota
Millard | Pikeville, Kentucky Tulip Grove | Hermitage, Tennessee
Audubon Montessori School | New Orleans, Louisiana DuPont {| Old Hickory, Tennessee
New Suncook School j Lovell, Maine Ortega j Austin, Texas
Mt. Washington j Baltimore, Maryland Stonewall Jackson j Dallas, Texas
Sanborn School j Andover, Massachusetts Bunker Hill i Houston, Texas
Graham & Parks Alternative Public School i Cambridge, Massachusetts Christa McAuliffe i Lewisville, Texas
Nantucket - Nantucket, Massachusetts Huffman - Plano, Texas
Barton ! Detroit, Michigan Shepard ! Plano, Texas
Blue Earth ! Blue Earth, Minnesota W.H.L. Wells ! Plano, Texas
New Hope |! New Hope, Minnesota Fidalgo | Anacortes, Washington
Susan Lindgren Intermediate Center ! St. Louis Park, Minnesota Phantom Lake |! Bellevue, Washington
D.T. Cox | Pontotoc, Mississippi Milwaukee German Immersion School | Milwaukee, Wisconsin

(continued on page 64)
62 REDBOOK APRIL 1993

-ghleag

se, SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT

"Despite a lack of resources affluent

schools take for granted, these 12
schools have made significant gains in

-- academic achievement, attendance rates,

» Sw, 449 and student behavior. Their strategies
CHOOY are both innovative and inspirational.

Baker’s Chapel Elementary, Greenville, South Carolina

For years, Baker’s Chapel Elementary had a reputation

for mediocrity. But with the 1983 hiring of principal Nancy

Elementary School | City/State
Liberty ! Midway, Georgia
S. Ellen Jones | New Albany, Indiana
Shady Grove | Monroe, Louisiana
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor ! Baltimore, Maryland
Mather | Dorchester, Massachusetts
Dag Hammarskjéld School No. 6 | Rochester, New York

Farnsworth, everything changed. She insisted that every
night the 317 students complete homework in math and
reading. Each month, they had to write a book report, finish
a science and social studies project, and memorize a poem.
Each teacher was required to host three field trips and

three outside speakers per year, as well as write one grant
application annually. Today the school’s curriculum,
teachers, and principal have all won awards. Between 1983
and 1990, test scores in reading doubled; in mathematics,
they tripled. “If you expect kids to achieve, they’re going to,”
observes Farnsworth.

Efementary School | City/State
Winton Place Primary School ! Cincinnati, Ohio
Pierce ! Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Baker’s Chapel ! Greenville, South Carolina
Whiteville | Whiteville, Tennessee
Montgomery | Farmers Branch, Texas
Tiskelwah | Charleston, West Virginia

CLASSROOM INNOVATION

Recognizing that not everyone works best in traditional
learning settings, these six standout schools are honored for
implementing creative and successful curriculum projects to
better reach their students.

Yonkers Public School No. 29, Yonkers, New York

Nature is at the heart of the learning process at School No.
29. The school boasts a wildlife bird sanctuary, and students
learn about local plants and animals at workshops taught

by rangers and scientists. While many schools feature
recycling programs, School No. 29 has taken its program
further, integrating the environment into all subject

areas. The school’s three wings are divided into geographic ~

regions—like oceans, marshlands, and deserts—so teachers
can develop thematic units for math and reading. Recently,
students won a national award for a primer about recycling.
“We want students to understand that ecology is a way

of life,” says principal Marilyn Walder, “not something on
a bumper sticker.”

Elementary School

Susan Roll Leach School #68
Stanton

Bach Open Classroom Program
Pierre Laclede

Saco Public School

Yonkers Public School No. 29

City/State
Indianapolis, Indiana
Stanton, Kentucky
Ann Arbor, Michigan
St. Louis, Missouri
Saco, Montana
Yonkers, New York

“

SPECIAL-NEEDS PROGRAMS

The judges honored these ten schools for their exceptional
efforts to meet the needs of those with physical, emotional, or
behavioral learning disabilities.

Vilonia Elementary, Vilonia, Arkansas
At rural Vilonia Elementary, one third of the pupils in some

classes of the third to fifth grades are “differently abled,” as the

school calls them. Everyone learns together thanks to teachers
who are jointly certified in elementary and special education,
and the fact that kids with disciplinary problems are paired
with high school students who serve as role models. Physically
or mentally limited pupils work with gifted fifth graders
during science activities. “Our goal is to get all students to
accept that everyone has a problem of some sort,” says
principal Ed Bradshaw, who reports that improved self-esteem
among all students is the result.

Elementary School
Educational Program for
the Individual Child
Vilonia

Linda Vista

| City/State

I

| Birmingham, Alabama
| Vilonia, Arkansas

| San Diego, California

Elementary School

Hartman
Sarah Collins
Beacon Heights

| City/State
1 Omaha, Nebraska

! Greenville, South Carolina
I Salt Lake City, Utah

John Quincy Adams | District of Columbia
Ala Wai | Honolulu, Hawaii

Gilbert Linkous | Blacksburg, Virginia
Emily Dickinson | Redmond, Washington

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Unlike schools that lock their doors after classes, the five
winners in this category excel in offering challenging and
mind-expanding activities to enrich students’ lives.

Vaughn Road Elementary School, Montgomery, Alabama
For many kids in the Montgomery area, the biggest draw

in town for sheer fun isn’t the local mall or video arcade. It’s
Vaughn Road Elementary School’s activities program.

Once a month, the school’s 629 students skip their routine in
favor of taking courses in everything from bowling and cake

4 REDBOOK APRIL 1993

decorating to oceanography and jazz dance. Like free
universities, the 42 course offerings are taught by parents,
teachers, and business leaders (and funded by a $6,000 grant

from a local councilman).

Elementary School | City/State
Vaughn Road ! Montgomery, Alabama
Eccleston ! Orlando, Florida
Frederick Funston Elementary | Chicago, Illinois
i Alpine School ! Sparta, New Jersey
John B. Dey Elementary | Virginia Beach, Virginia

(continued on page 66)